Against the Odds
by Mikauzoran
Summary: Pandora's not the only gem with mystical powers. Kaito finds one specializing in fertility, and it leaves him pregnant with Hakuba's child. Kaito's panicking. How will he tell Saguru? That would mean exposing his identity, revealing Pandora. Will he even believe him? And will Kaito and the child even survive? Kaito's body wasn't meant to carry a baby, and this could be a disaster.


Mikau: Hello everyone! Thanks so much for giving this fic a shot! Especially since the summary was so weak. This was actually supposed to be a short, but…it grew. ^.^; It was another one of those things where I tried to fit all five words of the day from Poirot Café into one story. The words were: dove, parent, soccer, wave, and scar. And then this happened. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: If I owned it, there would be more mystical gems out there. I think it would be cool if Kaito found one or two before actually finding Pandora. The antics! Can you imagine? I mean, if there's one magical gem, there's two, and enough supernatural stuff happens in Magic Kaito originally that they could totally put another magic jewel in there. Just saying.

…

Against the Odds

Has this ever happened to you? Something starts out so great, and you think it's going to be the best thing that's ever happened, but then…well, then everything goes to hell in a hand basket with green and white ribbons? That was what was happening to Kaito.

The heist had gone so well. He'd gotten away without too much trouble. No one had even chased him. Figures that the night that the Taskforce finally figures out the trick with the dummy would be the night when Kaito felt bad for them and decided not to use a dummy. He'd just flown off while his poor, sweet Taskforce scoured the museum for any trace of him.

Kaito had landed on a nearby roof and checked out the gem that had, regrettably, not been Pandora. He'd just been about to slip the jewel into his pocket when one of the shadows moved.

"I thought you might perch here," a certain obnoxious, if not incredibly handsome, British detective purred from the overlapping darkness. Hakuba Saguru stepped out into the dim moonlight with a faint smirk on his lips.

Kaito returned the grin. "Good evening, Tantei-san. So good to see you; I thought you weren't coming. It's so nice of you to wait on this roof for me, but I'm afraid I can't stay. Please don't be offended. It's not you."

"Wait!" Hakuba called out, taking a tentative step forward towards the thief.

Kaito paused almost involuntarily.

"Wait," Saguru repeated softly. "I…I wanted to talk to you."

Kaito raised an eyebrow, but he didn't sense a trap. He stood there, so still he might have been mistaken for a gargoyle by the people down below. He let the silence fill the space between them until Hakuba decided to break it.

"I…first of all, I want you to know that I mean you no harm." He inched closer to the thief, almost afraid to move too quickly lest he startle the Phantom, causing him to flee.

Kaito remained where he was, allowing the advance.

"I also want to assure you that I am completely sincere and by no means intend to try to expose your true identity, even though I am certain that I know who you are. I mean, I would never do something like this unless I was." Hakuba continued forward, step by step until he was just a foot away. "And I promise not to touch the monocle or the top hat, so…"

There was an awkward moment between them as Saguru bit his lip and looked Kaito nervously in the eye.

Kaito waited patiently but apprehensively, still not comprehending anything that his rival was saying other than the fact that Hakuba didn't plan on outing him at the moment.

And then Saguru leaned in and placed the lightest of kisses upon Kaito's lips.

Oh. _Oh_.

As Saguru began to pull back, Kaito surged forward, wrapping his arms around the detective and initiation a kiss of his own, gemstone still in hand.

And now it was Saguru's turned to be surprised, but pleasantly so.

The kiss turned into a tug-of-war of tongues and teeth. Hips ground together as hands snaked under clothes. And then detective and thief gasped in unison as they both felt a literal electric jolt run through their bodies, making their skin tingle.

"I've heard of sparks flying, but…" Saguru chuckled against Kaito's throat.

Kaito giggled in reply, clinging to Saguru's torso as he came down from the high. "Yeah. That was fun." Kaito smiled, licking his lips as he looked his partner in the eye. (It could just be the dim lighting, but Hakuba's pupils were the size of marbles. Call him egotistical, but Kaito was betting it was because of him.) "We should do that again sometime," Kaito continued pointedly.

Saguru nodded, missing Kaito's heat desperately as the thief pulled away. "Perhaps I'll catch up with you on some other rooftop after your next heist."

"Make it a hotel roof." Kaito winked, preparing to backflip off of the building. "Or…maybe I should just come visit you in the comfort of your own home. You could show me around your bedroom…. We could test the shock absorption of the springs of your mattress," Kaito snickered, loving the way Saguru's face was growing progressively redder with each successive sentence.

"E-Eventually," the detective stuttered.

"Soon," Kaito corrected, smiling in such a way that Hakuba would realize that he'd woken up a very hungry predator.

Saguru gulped but nodded.

And then Kaito was gone, plotting all the ways he was going to make Saguru gasp and moan next time.

But then Kaito woke up the next morning feeling incredibly sick. He spent the day hanging over his toilet bowl as wave after wave of nausea rolled over him.

The next day didn't go much better, and his doves hovered over him in worry as he spent a second day in a row throwing up everything he tried to put in his mouth.

Day three was worse. The vomiting had finally let up, but now Kaito was ravenous. He'd gone to the store to get some saltines, ginger ale, and soup, but just as he rounded the corner of the drink aisle, he spotted one of the little bulk bins of dried mackerel.

And his first thought upon seeing the shriveled up little terrors of the sea was "God, that looks good."

He did a double take, looking at the little beasties again. The effect was the same. Those tiny fishies looked good. For the first time, he wasn't afraid. He wanted to eat them, fistfuls of them.

And that was when Kaito knew he had to get to the doctor fast.

At first the doctor wasn't really concerned with the sudden disappearance of a decade and a half long phobia, but he did think that the extreme vomiting was worrisome. At Kaito's insistence, they did blood and urine tests.

When the doctor called Kaito in again the next day, Kaito could tell immediately that he had some incredibly rare, fatal disease just from the look on the doctor's face. When the doctor said that they'd be doing an ultrasound of Kaito's abdomen, Kaito was a little surprised. Maybe he had cysts? Stomach cancer? Did they do ultrasounds for cancer? Kaito was panicking.

The gel was cold, and the little sensor thing that the doctor was rolling around on Kaito's stomach felt funny.

"F-Find anything?" Kaito gulped after they'd been at it for long enough that Kaito felt that the doctor should know something.

Araide-sensei nodded, turning the screen so that Kaito could see. The doctor pointed to a little oblong mass.

"_Cancer?"_ Kaito thought, but then the mass moved.

"You're pregnant."

Kaito blinked. "I'm a guy."

"And you're pregnant," Araide-sensei repeated, not believing it himself.

"But…I've never…I didn't…I'm a virgin." Kaito gawked at the little blob of humanity on screen.

"And yet you're pregnant," Araide-sensei insisted softly.

Kaito felt dizzy. He pointed to the screen. "That. That's…" he pointed to his stomach. "…in here?"

Doctor Araide nodded. "Yeah. Would you want to hear the heartbeat? I can turn the sound on."

Kaito gulped. "Y-Yeah."

And there it was. A heartbeat. And the baby on the screen was moving. And Kaito could hear it, very much alive and inside of his abdomen. A baby.

"Can you tell if it's a boy or a girl yet?" Kaito demanded, feeling sick and ecstatic at the same time.

"Not yet."

Kaito nodded, staring at his baby and making plans. He had to finish school. That was a no-brainer. He'd call his mom and have her come home to help with daycare. Jii-chan could help too. And Aoko and maybe even Keiko. NOT Akako. Akako was staying the hell away from his child. Kaito would finish college and get a good job and support the both of them. In the meantime, Kaito could start by breaking into the world of magic in his own right. Kid would have to retire because Kaito was not leaving his own baby fatherless. But…was Kaito ready to be a parent?

The question hung there for a minute before Kaito decided that it didn't matter. He was pregnant, and there was nothing he could do about that, so a parent he would be.

But wait.

"Sensei, I'm a guy. I don't…I don't have the proper equipment to carry a baby, do I?" Kaito looked at the young doctor, feeling very afraid.

Araide bit his lip and then shook his head. "No. No, you don't."

"Then what's gonna happen? I mean…I guess we could do a…a C section, right? That'll leave a scar, won't it? But you'll be able to get the baby out okay? Or…I guess you're not a baby doctor, but…but…I mean…" Kaito's mind was going as fast as a computer doing a google search as his mouth spit out whatever popped into his head. It felt like a soccer ball was stuck in Kaito's throat. "I…Doctor, I'm not going to be able to have this baby, am I? It's not going to make it, is it?"

Araide-sensei chewed on his lip thoughtfully for a minute before he replied. "Kaito-kun, I have no idea what's going to happen. To my knowledge, a male has never been pregnant before, so I have no precedent to work with. We're not a very big clinic, and I don't have a wealth of resources available. For all I know, you could be just fine and carry to full term. You could miscarry. You could have a preemie. I wouldn't get your hopes up because, like you said, you are not physically equipped to have a child. Yet, I wouldn't completely despair either because…well, you somehow managed to get pregnant with all the odds stacked against you."

"You have a point," Kaito hummed, considering his baby once more. He was thinking Masaomi for a boy and Akari for a girl.

"I want you to come in for a checkup every week, though, and we'll go from there. Go to the hospital immediately, though, if anything happens."

"Right," Kaito whispered.

He stayed at the doctor's office for another half hour getting over the shock and just enjoying the sound of his child's heartbeat, and then Kaito went home and threw out all of the junk food in his home. He went to the grocery store and bought a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats, and lean proteins.

It wasn't until the next day that he remembered that he had a stolen gemstone to return. And that was when Kaito remembered his heated make out session with Detective Hakuba. And that lead to Kaito remembering the history behind the gem he had stolen. It had belonged to a king's favorite concubine, one that had born him son after son after son. And it was then that Kaito knew that he had to go tell Hakuba the news.

…

Kaito gathered his courage and rang the doorbell of the Hakuba Manor. Baaya, the housekeeper and Saguru's foster mother of sorts, answered with a soft smile.

"Saguru-botchama has mentioned you before." She nodded knowingly.

"All good things, I hope?" Kaito tried not to squirm.

She held in a chuckle, delighting in teasing her son's crush. "Good things, of course…and some very, very bad."

"Oh." Kaito gulped.

Her eyes narrowed. "He's serious about you, you know. I do hope you intend to marry him."

"Oh." Kaito blinked, feeling both terrified and relieved all at the same time. He didn't dare joke that Kaito had come here hoping that Saguru intended to marry _him_. "I mean…if he'll have me."

Seeming pleased with Kaito's reply, Baaya motioned him towards the stairs. "I'll lead you to his room."

Kaito's stomach churned as he followed Baaya up the stairs and down the hall, but that might just have been morning sickness.

Baaya knocked on the door and announced, "Saguru, Kuroba Kaito is here to see you!"

"What?!" came the frazzled reply. "J-Just a minute!"

There were the sounds of scrambling inside, and several minutes later the door slowly opened.

"Ku-Kuroba," Hakuba stammered. "I…When you were absent from school for an entire week, I thought…"

"I was sick." Kaito shrugged, feeling the strong urge to throw up.

"I'll leave you two to it then," Baaya gracefully bowed out, but not before gently nudging Kaito forward, actually into the room, and closing the door behind him.

And now Kaito was trying to remember how exactly he was planning on telling his rival that, one, surprise! You were right all along and I really am an international jewel thief! and, two, surprise! I'm knocked up, and you're the other father!

Saguru shifted awkwardly. "So…um…are you feeling better?"

Kaito bit his lip. "Um…not exactly…I kind of…um…I have a bit of a…condition. I'm gonna be…out of commission for a couple months."

Saguru's eyebrows shot up. "Kuroba, are you alright?! Is it terribly serious?! Come, sit down!"

Kaito found himself being ushered to the couch and gingerly helped to sit…just like a pregnant lady…or an elderly person, but… And then Hakuba offered him a cup of tea.

"And some crackers, if you have them, please," he entreated, feeling almost seasick.

"Of course." Saguru rushed to dig some out of the little snack bin by the mini fridge/microwave setup. "Kuroba, what do you have? Is there anything I can do to help?"

Kaito grimaced, thinking, _"Oh, no. No. You've done enough, thank you."_ "Thanks, Hakuba, but…we'll talk about that in a minute. First…do you believe in magic?"

Saguru blinked in confusion. "Like…the kind that you do, or…wizards and dragons and stuff?"

"Gems with mystical powers, specifically." Kaito made a point of looking down into his tea.

Saguru pursed his lips. "Not at all. Why?"

Kaito chewed nervously on the inside of his cheek. "Can we pretend that they're real for a minute?"

"…Sure." Saguru was trying very hard to follow this conversation and connect its relevance to the present moment.

"Say there's this one that has the power to grant eternal life," Kaito began.

"Okay."

"People would want that power, right?" Kaito did his best to construct a bread trail of information.

"Of course."

"_Bad_ people too, right?" Kaito hinted.

"Naturally."

"So wouldn't it be better if someone not interested in the gem's power found it first and destroyed it so that the bad people couldn't use it?" Kaito looked up, meeting Saguru's eyes for the first time.

Saguru was quiet as he looked at Kaito, evaluating the other young man. Saguru nodded. "I see. Yes, that would be best. It would be ideal if one could do it in a slightly more legal way, but…" Here Saguru sighed. "I don't suppose anyone would have taken you seriously if you'd gone to the police claiming that there was such a gem. I suppose there are specific bad people in your hypothetical scenario that our disinterested party is trying to keep the magical gem away from?"

Kaito nodded, looking back down into his tea and eating a cracker.

"Specific bad people that shoot at specific phantom thieves over a bloody myth," Saguru hissed.

Kaito looked back up. "Hakuba, I think Pandora might actually exist."

Saguru rolled his eyes and then looked incredulously at the thief on his sofa. "I suppose you have empirical evidence to support your beliefs?"

"Anecdotal evidence." Kaito shrugged.

"…Okay," Saguru sighed. "If you say magical gemstones exist and you have reason to believe that they exist, I'm willing to suspend my disbelief and go with you on this. I suppose that the real point is that these bad people believe that Pandora exists and that they're willing to kill for it. Obviously they have to be stopped, but I want you to go about it a different way from now on. We'll come up with some other way, do you understand? What can I do to help you for the time being?"

Kaito fidgeted in his seat once more. "Well, actually, because of my current condition, I'm going to have to put my night job on hold anyway, so searching for Pandora legally in the meantime…maybe I could use your help with that, but I didn't come here about Pandora."

Saguru frowned. "Then…why are you here? Why tell me all this?"

"Because I couldn't tell you what I need to tell you until you had all of the background information." Kaito took a deep breath and pulled the recently stolen emerald out of his pocket, setting it on the coffee table in between them. "This gem isn't Pandora, but it does have powers."

Saguru's jaw dropped. There was a priceless emerald on his coffee table. He now had indisputable proof that Kuroba was Kid. But most importantly, "What does it do?"

"Sit down, please," Kaito sighed, setting down his teacup and pushing it aside. He scooted over so that there would be space on the couch for Hakuba too.

"What does it do?" Saguru repeated softly once he was seated.

"It has the power of fertility. It used to belong to a concubine that had twelve sons for the king, one right after another."

"Yes, but…what exactly does that mean?" Saguru searched Kaito's face for answers, but Kaito's poker face was impenetrable.

"The other night, when we were kissing, we both felt that spark like an electric shock, right?" Kaito slowly led Saguru along.

Saguru nodded. "You're saying that that was when the gem did…whatever it does? That…that it did something to us?"

"That it did something to _me_ since I was the one holding the damn thing," Kaito managed to get out in a steady tone of voice.

"It made you sick," Saguru conjectured.

Kaito shrugged. "Sort of. I'm pregnant."

Saguru sat there blinking for a minute. "What?"

"I'm pregnant," Kaito repeated, panicking on the inside.

"You can't be," Saguru chuckled. "You're…I mean…males don't get pregnant."

"Yeah." Kaito rolled his eyes. "That's what I said, but they did tests at the doctor's office, and they did an ultrasound, and…" Kaito pulled out the ultrasound photo and set it down on the coffee table beside the emerald. "And I'm pregnant."

Saguru picked up the photo and studied it.

Kaito squirmed on the couch beside him as the silence pressed down on him like a trash compactor.

"You really are pregnant, aren't you?" Saguru whispered, staring at Kaito.

Kaito nodded, trying his hardest not to throw up.

Saguru's jaw dropped open once more, and his eyes widened in sudden realization. "Oh my God. Shit. You're trying to tell me that I'm the father."

Kaito nodded, wanting to cry. His mind started racing again, and he debating telling Hakuba that he didn't need to worry about it, that Kaito didn't expect anything from him, that Kaito would be fine on his own, that the baby probably wasn't going to make it anyway, so…

But then Saguru wrapped his arms around him and whispered, "Kaito…oh, God, Kaito." And then Hakuba started kissing his face and nuzzling him. "Dove, are you alright? What can I do for you? Kaito, you don't have to worry about anything. I'll take care of you. I'll take care of the baby. Stay here tonight, and we can go get your things tomorrow so that you can move in."

"W-Wait," Kaito stuttered as Saguru went on and on. "Don't."

"Don't?" Saguru cocked his head to the side, pulling back ever so slightly. "Don't what? What's the matter, Dove?"

Tears started to well up in the corners of Kaito's eyes. "You don't have to do anything. I don't want to trap you since the baby probably won't make it anyway."

Saguru's eyebrows pinched together as he stared at Kaito in concern. He took his thumb and wiped away the gathering drops. "Kaito…in case you missed the part where I kissed you…" Saguru leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to Kaito's lips once more, just like he had done a week ago on that rooftop. "I don't just go around kissing international jewel thieves because I get off on the thrill of it. I _love_ you. I've been chasing you for three years now, and, as I got to know you, I came to love you. I am utterly committed to you and this child. _You_, Kaito, are the one that's trapped, if either of us really are. Now what's this about the baby not making it? Is there a problem? Because my family knows the best doctors. I'll see to it that you and our child receive the best care, Kaito, so don't worry, even if it is a high-risk pregnancy."

"Hakuba, I'm a guy," Kaito sighed. "You work with bodies. You're familiar with human anatomy. You know that I'm not built to have a baby. I don't know how all this mumbo-jumbo magic hoodoo works. Things could be just fine. Both the baby and I could die. I don't know what's going on, and it's obvious that this is going to be different from a normal pregnancy already. I mean, the gem just knocked me up last week, and I'm already getting a bit of a bump. This kid is growing a lot faster than normal, so…I just don't know, but I have this horrible feeling that the baby's not gonna make it, and I'm gonna be a wreck afterwards, so don't even bother with me in the first place. It doesn't matter if you love me or not, you're signing up for a roller coaster ride through hell."

Saguru took Kaito by the hand and forced the magician to look him in the eye. "And if this child doesn't survive, we'll simply grieve together and then adopt. I'm well aware that it's your body, Kaito, but it's my child as well. I want a say in things. I want to be a proper parent, unlike my own have been. No one knows the future, so I'm making the decision to hope for the best and throw my lot in with you. Okay?"

Kaito was silent as Saguru sat there smiling lovingly at him. "…Okay," he finally replied, resting his head on Saguru's shoulder.

"Excellent," Saguru cooed, bursting with joy. "Then you'll stay the night and we'll move you in tomorrow. Do we know the sex of the baby yet? I gather not considering you referred to the child as 'it'. Then I don't suppose I can start purchasing baby items yet. Though, I never was one for color-coding children by sex in the first place. Would it be alright if we got some gender-neutral colored things? Baaya is going to go absolutely nuts when she finds out that she's got a grandbaby on the way. I can't believe I'm going to be a father!"

"Aren't you scared?" Kaito chuckled, feeling a little queasy but mostly relieved. It was good to see Saguru's enthusiasm.

Saguru shrugged. "I suppose it is a big responsibility to become a parent, especially since we're only twenty years old, but…there's nothing to be afraid of, Kaito. If you hadn't noticed, if I truly wanted to, I could throw money at problems in order to make them go away. Typically I only use name dropping and money throwing as a last resort, but that option is there for us. I have a feeling that my parents are going to flip, but Baaya will be happy, and she's the only one that really matters. Besides, even if my parents do disown me, I've made enough in the stock market to provide for our family on my own. I think they'd rather keep things quiet, though, rather than make a fuss by throwing me out. Other than that, I love you, and you're having my child. What's there to be afraid of?"

"Everything," Kaito whispered.

"Does it kick yet?" Saguru changed the subject slightly, tentatively placing his hand on Kaito's stomach.

"No…but you can hear the heartbeat on the ultrasound. If you want, we could go to the doctor's tomorrow so you can hear it," Kaito proposed.

"Could we?" Saguru nearly squealed in delight.

"Yeah," Kaito giggled, realizing for the first time how cute Saguru was when he smiled like that. Come to think of it, Kaito didn't think he'd ever seen Hakuba smile like that.

"Oh! And we're going to have to think of names!" Saguru laughed, hugging Kaito tight to his chest and nuzzling the thief's neck. "God, I can't believe it. I'm going to be a father. God…I'm going to be a father with _you_. Our child is going to be a little hellion, isn't it?"

"If it's anything like me." Kaito shrugged. "But, hey. I was a good kid, you know."

"I'm sure you were," Saguru snorted, rolling his eyes in disbelief. "God. I still can't believe it. I must be the only guy to have impregnated another man simply by kissing him."

Kaito opened and closed his mouth. "…You know…it really isn't fair to you, becoming a father without getting to have the sex first. If you maybe wanted to collect on that, I—"

"—Kuroba Kaito, you are in no condition to be making that offer," Saguru scoffed. "Look at you. You're visibly not well. It would be negligent of me to lay a hand on you in your current state. Besides…if you remember, I was reluctant to have you as Kid visit me at home anyway. I was never looking to bed you, Kaito. That wasn't my intention when I kissed you. I simply wanted to make you aware of my feelings and hopefully establish a relationship from there. I think the time we have until the baby is born will be a good opportunity for us to build a foundation as a couple. I'd wanted to go on dates, hold hands, write love letters, and all of that other sappy romantic stuff. I never intended for heists to become trysts. I think that after the baby is born and you've suitably recovered…if our relationship has reached that point…then I plan on making love to you."

Kaito could feel his toes curl and his cheeks turn magenta. "I'm good with that."

"Good," Saguru chuckled, pressing a kiss to Kaito's left temple. "Have you eaten dinner?"

Kaito shook his head. "I was worried that I'd throw up anything I ate before coming here I was so nervous."

"Then let's get you something nutritious and easily digestible." Saguru stood and held out his hand to help Kaito up.

Kaito blushed. "You don't have to do that. I'm not disabled or anything; I'm just pregnant."

"With my child," Saguru added, helping Kaito up against his will. "You are the man that I love, my future spouse, and pregnant with my child. I'm entitled to fuss over you, so you'd best grow to like it."

Kaito smiled mischievously. "I like it when you get all bossy and overprotective."

"Good. It's going to happen a lot, I assure you," Saguru chuckled.

…

Kaito moved in with the Hakubas, and they broke the news to their families in the week that followed. They edited the mystical aspect of the pregnancy out of the version that they told Helen and Akihiko, but Baaya and Chikage got the full story…minus the sordid details of the boys' tonsil hockey session.

As the weeks went by, Kaito grew paler and paler. His energy left him bit by bit, but the baby kept growing. Kaito was able to keep down decreasing amounts of food until it got to the point where he was hooked up to an IV and confined to bed. Chikage, Saguru, and Baaya stayed with him, though.

It was about four months into the pregnancy, and Saguru was sitting in bed with his beloved, just chatting while he played with Kaito's hair. Kaito slipped in and out of consciousness nowadays, but his vitals on the screen looked good, so they just let the magician rest and talked with him whenever he was awake.

"How are you feeling today?" Saguru whispered, nuzzling Kaito's ear.

"Fat," Kaito chuckled weakly, rubbing his stomach. It wasn't as big as a normal pregnant woman's, but Kaito did have a bump the size of a volleyball sliced in half.

Saguru rolled his eyes, smoothing Kaito's hair. "Dove, you're gorgeous."

"Ha. Funny." Kaito rolled his eyes right back. "I probably look like hell. I'm fat and sweaty and pale."

"You look beautiful," Saguru insisted. "You two look beautiful," he whispered as he ran a hand over Kaito's abdomen. "Kaito, you're magnificent, and I love you."

"So long as you think so," Kaito mumbled, shutting his eyes. "I just can't wait until I'm not pregnant anymore. How many more days?"

"Three," Saguru giggled, so excited to finally have their child in his arms he didn't know how traditional couples managed to wait nine whole months. "Araide-sensei said the baby should be viable now, so they'll be doing the C section on Friday."

"Good," Kaito sighed, drifting off.

And then something went horribly wrong. The numbers on the screen went haywire; some plummeted while others rocketed up. The machines started beeping and alarm bells sounded.

The small team of doctors that they'd recently added to their staff came running, and soon they were in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. After that, all Saguru could do was pray and sit and wait for what felt like days with Chikage and Baaya as the red "In Surgery" sign above the door burned. It was well after midnight when the light went out.

Saguru was on his feet in an instant, wringing his hands and creating a nice little puddle of sweat rapidly expanding at his feet. He feared the worst. After such a long surgery, had they finally decided that it was hopeless and given up?! Had they been successful?! Was Kaito going to be okay?! What about the baby?! Because if the baby wasn't okay, Kaito wasn't going to be okay…. Saguru wouldn't be okay. His only chance for a flesh and blood-related child…his only chance to create a new little life with Kaito…his only chance to see Kaito's wild hair combined with his own eyes…his poise and grace coupled with Kaito's spark and impish demeanor… God, how Saguru _wanted_ this child, and there was no "try again" option. Adoption, yes, but…_their_ child, no.

Again, after the longest expanse of time that Saguru had ever felt like he had to wait next to when Kaito was actually under the knife, the surgeon came out.

Chikage and Baaya stood, each taking hold of one of Saguru's arms and squeezing hard. They huddled together as the doctor approached as if they could block any bad news she might be bringing if they only held each other tight.

The surgeon smiled, a tired but triumphant smile. "They're okay," she reported.

"Thank God," Saguru whispered, tears of joy streaming down his face as he hugged both Chikage and Baaya to him.

The doctor continued, "They're in critical but stable condition, and we expect them to improve shortly. Kuroba-san will be kept in the Intensive Care Unit, and the baby is going to the NICU. Someone will come down and get you once they're settled in."

"Thank you so much," Chikage chuckled through her own tears, reaching out to shake the doctor's hand.

…

Kaito knew where he was even before he was cognizant enough to open his eyes and look around. He hated the smell of hospitals; however, this particular hospital smell was mixed with pine scent, and that specific pine scent was a smell that Kaito had long ago learned to recognize.

Saguru was with him. He knew the smell of his fiancé's body wash from days of snuggling and soft, innocent caresses.

Kaito slowly opened his eyes and tried to focus. He took stock of the situation, inventorying all of his body parts. He seemed to be fine except…

He sat bolt upright, nearly knocking Saguru over. His hand flew to his stomach, and he gasped, "The baby?!"

"Shh," Saguru cooed, taking Kaito by the hand and trying to coax his darling back into a reclining position. "She's okay, Dove. Don't worry. Everything's fine, Kaito."

Kaito relaxed, letting everything fall and be supported by the pillows surrounding him. "_She_?" he whispered. "She's a girl?"

Saguru nodded, a proud grin threatening to tear his face in two. "Yes. You, Kuroba Kaito, have given me the most beautiful daughter on the face of this earth, and I will never be able to repay you for that gift." Saguru leaned in and kissed Kaito's softly, gently nuzzling Kaito's hair.

"A daughter," Kaito mumbled, absolutely exhausted but deliriously happy at the same time. "And she's normal?"

"Absolutely," Saguru assured, taking Kaito's hand and rubbing calming circles onto the palm. "They're doing bloodwork and tests and everything now, but she's healthy and completely average as far as newborn baby girls go. Well, she's a little small, but not unhealthily so. I was little too, but…she'll grow. As far as they can tell, she's just like any other human female born of a human female by traditional means of conception."

"Good," Kaito sighed in relief. "Where is she?"

"NICU, but don't worry," Hakuba quickly explained before Kaito could panic and tear his stitches. "She had a rough start to life, but she's improving quickly. They'll be moving her out of there in a few hours once they finish their tests. The nurse said he'd bring her by a little later so that we can hold her."

Kaito smiled, unable to wait for his chance to see his baby. "Have you held her yet?"

Saguru shook his head. "I've just looked in through the window at her. She wasn't ready to be handled yet…but they said that if she keeps improving at a steady rate, it won't be too much longer," Saguru informed cheerfully.

"What's her name?" Kaito was completely depleted as far as energy stores went, but he forced himself to stay awake and find out about his daughter.

Saguru blinked. "Oh…uh…we never decided. They asked, but…I couldn't just name your child without your consent, so…we were waiting for you to wake up. So…what's her name?"

"Akari?" Kaito quietly proposed, looking up at Saguru as if asking for permission.

"Kuroba Akari," Saguru chuckled, delighting in his daughter's name rolling off of his tongue for the first time. "Beautiful."

Kaito shook his head as best as he could. "Hakuba Akari," he corrected.

The smile melted from Saguru's face. "Kaito, you're the one that carried her for four months. She should have your last name."

"I came up with the first name. She should have your surname. _You're_ the bastard that got me knocked up in the first place, and I want everyone to know it," Kaito chuckled, again, weakly. "Besides, everyone will know she's a Kuroba just by looking at her and watching her. She'll need your last name to prove she's a Hakuba. I think the Hakuba family will be the one she'll have to impress, so she'll have a better shot with them if she has your last name."

Saguru frowned deeply. "I don't want things to be like that. Akari doesn't have to prove anything to those people, and family ties are more important to you, Kaito. She should be a Kuroba."

Kaito shook his head, dead tired but determined to fight. "A compromise: the last name will be Hakuba, but we'll use the kanji for white, the Haku part of your name paired with the Ba for feathers from my name. That way it'll be like she has both of our last names, but we'll pronounce it like yours."

Saguru gave Kaito's hand a squeeze. "Alright. You win. Hakuba Akari it is. Now rest, Kaito my love. I'll wake you when Akari comes to visit."

"What's wrong with me anyway?" Kaito thought to mumble just before he nodded off to sleep.

Saguru smiled lovingly down at the mother of his child and brushed Kaito's bangs out of the way so that he could press his lips to Kaito's forehead unhindered. "You'll be okay, Dove," Saguru promised. "Just rest. For a few days, just rest."

It was a couple hours later when Miss Akari arrived, decked out in red and rolled up like a burrito in her baby blanket.

Saguru took her from the nurse and brought her over to Kaito, sitting down on the bed beside his mate and gently shifting Akari into Kaito's arms. Saguru stayed right at Kaito's side, wrapping his arms around his darling to help support Akari as well as just to be close to his family. Saguru rested his head against Kaito's as he looked down at their child.

Both Kaito and Saguru began to cry happily.

"She really is beautiful," Kaito hiccupped.

"As beautiful as her mother," Saguru whispered into Kaito's neck. "Thank you, Kaito."

"Thank _you_," Kaito echoed, tilting his head so that he could share a brief kiss with his fiancé. "You've taken such good care of us, Saguru, and I know I can count on you from now on too."

"Of course," Saguru assured, fingering the folds of his daughter's blanket. "I would do anything for you two."

They sat there quietly for another hour or so, chatting about future plans only half-seriously and just enjoying the presence of their daughter.

When it was time for Akari to go back, Kaito gave her up very reluctantly, but Saguru reminded him that they'd see her again soon and Kaito needed his rest.

Kaito rolled his eyes but nodded complaisantly, settling back into his pillows. "Saguru?" he called after a while.

"Dove?"

"I want another one," Kaito whispered.

"I think we'll have our hands full with just one, Kaito," Saguru chuckled.

Kaito shook his head and reached up to wrap his arms around Saguru's neck. "No. I want another one," Kaito demanded, a mischievous gleam in his eyes as he tilted up and kissed Saguru slowly.

"Oh," Saguru giggled as Kaito pulled back, releasing Saguru's lips with a pop. "Well, maybe after you're out of the hospital and all recovered we can see about having another one the old fashioned way."

"Yeah," Kaito tittered. "Because being a virgin mother kind of sucked." Kaito pulled his fiancé into another languid kiss.

But soon Chikage and Baaya came in to visit, cutting their little make out session short.

"Isn't it that kind of behavior that got you two into this mess in the first place," Chikage teased, coming over to sit by her son.

"Clearly they're unrepentant," Baaya chuckled, moving to stand at Saguru's side, placing her hands on his shoulders.

"We're gonna try for another one," Kaito snickered.

"Perhaps a boy this time," Saguru hummed, leaning in to brush his lips against Kaito's cheek.

Chikage frowned. "That's inadvisable. Just having one nearly killed you, Kaito."

Kaito shrugged. "Have you seen my daughter? Totally worth it."

"Maybe next time we'll adopt," Saguru remarked, never wanting to go through the sheer terror of almost losing Kaito and a baby again.

"Yeah," Kaito sighed. "I doubt conventional ways will work, and I don't think I'm willing to go through another mystical pregnancy again, but…have you seen my daughter? God. Akari's so beautiful."

Chikage nodded, so proud of her own child. "You were beautiful once," she chuckled. "What happened to you?"

Kaito rolled his eyes.

"He's still beautiful," Saguru cooed, and it was the look on his face that told Chikage that her son and her grandchildren would never want for anything.

All in all, it was a wonderful outcome from such a sticky situation.

The

End

…

Mikau: You know, as I was writing this, I was thinking, _"Geez, this is so horrible!"_ but now that I read through it again, it's not so bad. I actually think it's pretty cute, and there are some parts that I'm genuinely happy with. I hope you liked it too. I've actually always wanted to do a fic with Kaito being pregnant, but the whole idea of a guy just suddenly getting pregnant with no satisfactory explanation has always kept me from doing it. And then I thought, _"Of course! Magic gemstone!"_ And there you have it. Again, I hope you enjoyed the fic, and thanks in advance for taking the time to send in some feedback. Take care guys! Until next time!


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